WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Hot-shooting Grizzlies pick up first Summit League victory

ROCHESTER -- By turning in one of its most dominant 20-minute stretches of the season in the second half, Oakland University sailed past visiting IUPUI on Sunday to record its first Summit League win of the year, 68-59.

The Golden Grizzlies' shooters were red-hot throughout the contest, converting a season-high 61 percent of their attempts, including success on 15-for-20 shots after halftime.

After a back-and-forth start to the second half that featured multiple lead changes, Oakland (7-7, 1-1 Summit) eventually captured control of the scoreboard for good with 13:24 to play in the game after a pair of Elizabeth Hamlet free throws. The Grizzlies' lead ballooned to as many as 14 points down the stretch as IUPUI could no longer keep pace offensively.

"We went into halftime a little bit upset at the outcome and rightfully so. From that moment on, it was a refuse to lose attitude," Hamlet said, referring to the Jaguars' 8-2 scoring run to end the first half.

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With 13 points, Hamlet was one of just two Oakland players to reach double figures, as all nine players that entered for the Grizzlies got on the score sheet.

Just as she was in Friday's loss, freshman Elena Popkey was a consistent offensive force for Oakland, tallying a game-high 20 points, including three 3-pointers.

Francis attributed her team's improved shooting performance to better shot selection, as well as a favorable matchup against IUPUI's style of defense.

"(Our players) read the defense, they made great back cuts, they made great passes, and our bench was huge," Francis said.

"I was really pleased with how we handled their press. We said that it really helped playing Michigan State, Purdue and UConn (earlier this season). We learned a lot from that and I thought our players were really smart in how they beat it tonight."

A re-commitment to sound rebounding technique was also critical, enabling Oakland to overcome a near disastrous start to the game that saw the team fall behind 7-0 after a slew of offensive rebounds by IUPUI. Unhappy with the game's early developments, Grizzlies coach Beckie Francis was forced to call a timeout just two minutes into the game.

"We're a winning program, and we weren't pleased that we lost our home opener (on Friday)," Francis said. "We addressed (rebounding) at that 18-minute mark and said if you want to win the game, we have to start boxing out. They just turned it around after a little while longer. They had so much fight and pulled down the rebounds when we needed them to."

After losing the first-half rebounding battle 24-13, IUPUI managed to pull down just six boards in the final 20 minutes.

Oakland received a boost from Shelby Herrington off the bench in the opening minutes of the second half, as the sophomore forward knocked down three-straight jump shots shortly before the Grizzlies took a lead it wouldn't relinquish.

"Shelby was huge. The fact that she hit the shots (was good), but she knew when to take them. She came in aggressive and sprinted the floor to play good defense," Francis said. "I thought that was the key to the game. That 6-0 Shelby Herrington run was a turnaround."

The Jaguars (7-7, 1-1 Summit) were led by Akilah Sims and Kerah Nelson, who each recorded 10 points.

Up next, Oakland will be on the road to face first-year Summit League member Nebraska-Omaha on Thursday.